KISS frontman Gene Simmons voiced some strong opinions about immigrants in the United States on a recent episode of HuffPost Live.

Simmons, nee Chaim Witz, immigrated to the U.S. from Israel with his mother when he was just eight-years-old. Fifty-six years later, Simmons boasts a wildly successful international career, and a slot among America's most infamous musical icons.

While discussing about his new book Me, Inc., he spoke about his experience as an immigrant, and offered some controversial advice to fellow migrants. "I'm actually saying the thing that needs to be said, because the politically-correct climate is bullshit," Simmons said. "You don't want to upset anybody by saying, 'Learn to speak goddamn English.' So, as an immigrant, I'm telling you: learn to speak goddamn English. It is the key that will unlock the keys to the kingdom."

When pressed on the point, Simmons did not back down. "How about this: if Siri can't understand you, you're in trouble," he said.

Host Ricky Camilleri asked the rocker whether it would be difficult for immigrants to learn the language. "Of course it is difficult, but why should it be easy? Why should it?" Simmons responded. He also pointed out that he learned English when he moved to the country, and he now speaks five languages fluently.

Later, he told the host that immigrants can "speak any language they damn well please" so long as they learn English first. "It's a pre-requesite if you want to have access to wealth and education," he said.

The rocker expounded on his beliefs for over 10 minutes. Watch the full interview at HuffPost Live.

What are your thoughts on Gene Simmons' statements? Sound off in the comments!

Originally from El Paso, Texas, Cristina Mari Arreola earned her degree at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University before moving to New York, New York. In her downtime, you can usually find her scouring the city for the most authentic Mexican food (still looking...), scaring herself silly watching horror movies, or frantically reading a novel from her (extremely lengthy) reading list. . You can follow her on Twitter at @c_arreola.

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